Glasgow: There is a strong economic case for Scottish independence and its “immense” natural resources would guarantee a prosperous future, Alex Salmond, first minister of Scotland’s semi-autonomous government and leader of the Scottish National Party, said yesterday while unveiling detailed proposals ahead of next year’s referendum.
His deputy Nichola Sturgeon said the document “puts beyond any doubt that Scotland can afford to be independent”.
With 10 months to go until the vote for an independent Scotland, Salmond’s Scottish National Party (SNP) is struggling to convince Scots - some 38 per cent are currently planning to vote for independence, according to a Panelbase survey for the Sunday Times, while 47 would vote against.
An independent Scotland would continue to use the pound as its currency, keep Queen Elizabeth II as its monarch, but create its own defence force.
But Salmond added that the new country would also have to tackle a “legacy of debt, low growth and social inequality” bequeathed to it by the London government.
The white paper sets out Salmond’s vision of how he believes independence would affect Scots, from taxation and pensions to welfare, education and defence.
The document plans for Scotland to celebrate its independence day on March 24, 2016 and hold its first parliamentary elections in May 2016.
March 24 has a symbolic importance because it marks the anniversary of the signing of the Acts of Union in 1707, which joined Scotland and England into a single kingdom.
The white paper says a vote against independence would mean “Scotland stands still”.
But Britain’s former finance minister Alistair Darling, who is leading the “no” campaign, said it was “complete fantasy to believe that you can leave the UK but keep all the benefits of being part of it”.
“This document will be judged on its credibility,” he told BBC radio.
“No one is going to tell me that all the good things will stay north of the border and all the bad things will go to the south.”
Scots are generally “pretty sceptical about the whole idea of independence”, he added.
Britain’s Chief Secretary to the Treasury Danny Alexander warned Salmond on Tuesday that under independence the average basic rate taxpayer in Scotland would face a tax rise of £1,000 (Dh5,936) a year by the end of the decade.
“This is a very stark reminder of why it is in the interest of Scotland to pool these risks, not go it alone,” he wrote in a letter.
Prime Minister David Cameron’s Conservative-led government is pushing hard for a “no” vote in the referendum.
Scots will be able to request a hard copy of the white paper, and it will also be available to read online.
Scotland’s devolved government currently has control over a range of policies including health and education, but other key policy areas - including defence, foreign policy and welfare - are still controlled by London.
Salmond’s critics warn that a “yes” vote would throw up huge headaches for Edinburgh and London.
Rejoining the European Union and Nato could also be problematic, the “no” camp claims.
The blueprint also said a sovereign wealth fund would be created using revenue from exploiting oil and gas reserves worth around £1.5 trillion, the Sottish government said in an independence blueprint on Tuesday.
“This government will make the creation of a Scottish Energy Fund an early priority,” the devolved government, which favours independence, said in its report, adding that it would also put in place a more stable tax regime for oil and gas exploration.
Britain has long opposed the creation of a sovereign wealth fund using oil and gas money, making it one of the only oil-producing nations not to channel energy revenue into a separate fund.
Norway, for example, has one of the world’s richest wealth funds thanks to revenue from oil and gas fields.
